Orion's Belt
by Yawping Stance
Summary: Movieverse. So we know why Jack and Fabrizio are on the Titanic, but what about Tommy Ryan?Answer:a better life for his family. His wife is pregnant and they're dirt poor, so what better time to start a new life in America? COMPLETE.
1. Prologue

**Disclaimer: I don't own the movie Titanic or any of its characters. All I own is Allison, her family, and the pub.**

**October 18, 1905**

The girl had been there a week and still Tommy hadn't said more than two words to her. It wasn't because he was shy or was trying to work up the nerve, but simply because he had no interest. He was there to do his job and she to do hers, nothing more. The quiet, seemingly serious blue-eyed girl seemed content with this arrangement, too, so Tommy did nothing to change it. He was taken by surprise, therefore, when it was she who spoke first.

"So...how long've you worked here?" she asked the post-closing silence.

"Two years," he answered briefly, running a rag around the inside of a lager glass. He'd barely looked up from his work to answer here. It wasn't that Tommy was unfriendly...the words "socially inept" would have been more appropriately applied. He gave concise answers and if that displeased anyone they would have to deal with it.

"What's your name?" She made another attempt at contact.

"Tommy Ryan." Again, the answer was short, concise, and required minimal eye contact. "Yours?"

"Allison Riley," she grunted, lifting a particularly heavy dish-laden tray. "Ally, if you like," she said with a little more ease as she walked swiftly into the kitchen with the tray, then out again a minute or so later with a fresh table cloth. Tommy sighed inaudibly and decided that he may just have to acknowledge the girl's existence.

"So, Ally-If-You-Like, how'd _you_ manage to get a job here?" She looked up briefly from her table-setting.

"Hmm? Oh, through my ma. She knows the owner, he and me da were good friends back when he was alive. Me da, that is," she added. "What about you?" Tommy shrugged.

"Needed a job and they were hiring bar tenders, tha's all. Whoss a girl like you workin in a pub for, anyways?" She snickered.

"Whadya mean, 'a girl like me'?"

"Well, ye just don' seem the type to be workin in a pub is all. You seem a bit more...Iunno..._indoors-type_, I guess." Allison let out another snort of laughter.

"I got two older brothers, I'm as far from indoors as a proper lady can get."

"Proper lady?" Tommy smirked. "Proper ladies don't get jobs, specially clearin tables." She sighed.

"Don' matter how much money a girl's got: money don't buy class. But I was raised right, a good girl, and that's one thing ma's always said: 'We may be poor, but at least we're clean.' An' tha's really all I can ask fer. Got clothes on me back, air in me lungs, at least two meals a day, and a chance for an honest day's work. I got every reason in the world to be grateful, but messy though it is I can still say I'm a lady." To this, Tommy could say nothing and only went back to wiping glasses, pondering what she'd said. Allison herself also seemed perfectly happy to keep the silence, leading him to wonder if he'd said anything wrong.

As she worked, she kept her eyes only on the dishes and trays at hand, but Tommy couldn't say the same thing. While he dried and put away glasses and tankards, he kept glancing up at the new girl until he was eventually just openly staring. He admired how swiftly she moved with such delicate objects, how she seemed to have a system to clearing the tables: Glasses first in a row across the middle, then dinner plates on one side of the line, saucers on the other, silverware with the saucers. All this and a roughly folded dirty tablecloth were on the tray in less than two minutes. Once or twice he even caught himself completely stopping in his work to take a few moments to appreciate the fluid movement of her hips as she disappeared swiftly into the kitchen for a moment, then came back out again with a new cloth. The tables were reset as quickly as they had been cleared.

"And...you lock up, right?" Allison asked uncertainly. Tommy nodded and grunted an affirmation. "Right then. See you tomorrow, Tommy."

"Night, Ally."

"Tom, we can't do this." Allison's breathing was heavy in the dark.

"An' why not?" He planted long, slow kisses down her neck onto her shoulder.

"We...we got jobs ta do. We're at work...in a closet..." As if to prove her point, Tom tripped a little over a mop bucket.

"Tha' don' matter." He gently squeezed her breasts before his hands crept toward the middle to start unbuttoning her blouse.

"Mmf...Yer right..." He felt her fingers in his belt loops.

Tommy Ryan woke up in a cold sweat. It took a few minutes for his eyes to adjust to the dark, but before they had he knew that he wasn't in a closet in a pub, but in his own bedroom. Without Allison.

**October 20, 1905**

"So...Ally..." Though he knew it hadn't really happened, Tommy still felt awkward around Allison, convinced that she would somehow be able to read his mind if he so much as looked at her. "I saw you leavin yesterday, an' I noticed you didn' have anyone to walk you home."

"Aye..." Allison answered cautiously.

"Neither o' yer brothers meet you along the way, neither?" She shook her head as glasses and tankards flew from the table to the tray. The only reason he brought this issue up was because it was her last table and she would soon be heading home.

"Nope."

"Then I was ah...I was wonderin' if you'd allow me to walk ya home this evenin?" He turned away to pretend to be putting away a tankard to hide his blush.

"Why not?" Allison shrugged as nonchalantly as she could. Tommy grinned at the tankard.

"Alrigh' then. It'll only take me a few moments to lock up, then we can go."

As promised, Tommy locked up quickly in a minute or two, after making sure all of the liquor and spirits were safe. He guided Allison gently out the door with a hand on her back as they headed to her home.


	2. Beyond Queenstown

**April 11, 1912**

Tommy Ryan bent over Allison's sleeping form. He smiled as she sighed and mumbled something in her sleep. He tucked a stray bit of black hair behind her ear and kissed her forehead, shaking her shoulder a little.

"Time to get up," he whispered, moving his mouth over her ear. He didn't want to wake her, but today was the day. Allison moaned quietly and pulled the blanket up further. Tommy knelt down next to the bed shook her a little harder. "C'mon, Ally. It's the eleventh."

"Wha' time isit?" she mumbled into the pillow. He glanced at a grimy old clock hanging on the equally grimy wall.

"3:30." Allison groaned. They had a long journey to Queenstown, and she knew it. Tommy smiled gently and kissed his wife's forehead.

"I know, love. But you have to. Titanic leaves at 8 sharp, and I'm pretty sure they won't wait for a couple a third class passengers like us." Allison heaved a large, dramatic sigh.

"Ten more minutes?" Tommy smiled to himself and lowered his head in defeat.

"Fine. I'll start breakfast." He kissed her pregnant belly, now finally beginning to show a little, and groaned as he straitened his legs and went over to the stove. Allison rolled over and was back to sleep in a matter of seconds.

Ten minutes later she re-awoke, this time of her own accord, to the sound and mouth-watering smell of sizzling meat. She sat up, staring at her husband who was cooking the sausages in a small frying pan.

"Where'd you get that?" she demanded. He turned to her and grinned.

"Got 'em yesterday while you were at your ma's. Thought it might be a nice li'l surprise, seein' as it's a special occasion and all." She grinned at him.

"We won't have any money left to start us off in Boston at this rate." She was trying to chide him, but couldn't. They hadn't eaten meat for months, ever since Tommy had bought the tickets off of an old couple that had changed their minds about the voyage, saying that they were "too old for a change now." She and Tommy wanted to save enough money to have a good start in America, so they'd cut out buying meat since that was a relative luxury.

"New York," Tommy insisted, knowing she didn't mean the scolding. Since he'd gotten the tickets, they'd been arguing as to where they would stay. Allison wanted to go to Boston, saying that there was a fairly large Irish population and that her uncle Porrick had gone there years ago and had been successful. Tommy had argued that if Uncle Porrick had been so successful, he would've sent money back for his family to follow, and reminded her that to move from New York City to Boston would cost even_ more _money. Money which they didn't have. Allison sighed.

"I suppose we'll have to decide on that once we get there, won't we?"

"Decide nothin'! We're stayin' in New York." She sighed and swung her feet over the edge of the bed and onto the floor. Tommy froze for a moment. "Didja hear that?"

"Hear what?" Tommy smiled.

"It was the Devil. Sayin', 'God damn it, she's awake!'" Alice smiled and pushed playfully at her husband's shoulder as he chased the sausages out of the pan and onto a plate.

"I didn't hear ya say nothin'." Tommy pushed back.

"Oy! That was cheap!" She grinned and kissed his forehead as she plopped into his lap. "Oof! Easy love..." He tried to stay away from the fact that she'd gained weight in the past five months, should it set her off on a tirade...again.

"Oh, I'm sorry!" She kissed him. "I keep forgettin' I'm not as light as I used ta be."

"S'arright," he grunted while trying to adjust his legs beneath her. Their meal was taken in relative silence, both savoring each bite of meat they took. When they'd finished, they each grabbed their one bag and headed out. Allison stopped at the door and looked around.

"It looks so sad, Tom," she said mournfully. "Like it's waitin' for us, like we'll come back home any day." Tommy put an arm around her and kissed the top of her head.

"Don' worry. We'll have a new home, now; a better one. A home where we can raise the baby and not worry about whether we'll be able to eat that week." She nodded and wiped a tear away. Of course she was excited about going to America, but she'd lived in the same town all of her life; this was something completely different from anything she'd ever known.

"I just hope Sean takes good care of it."

"He will," Tommy assured her.

They'd sold their house the week before to Allison's older brother Sean, whose family was rapidly expanding: Allison would have rather sell her home to someone she knew would take care of her house and her possessions. They had left all of the furniture and most of their other possessions, save their clothes and a few keepsakes Allison couldn't have bared to part with. Everything they could fit into two bags.

The train ride to Queenstown was cramped and putrid smelling. They had, fortunately, managed to get a seat up front and by a window due to Allison's delicate condition. They were jostled aside at every stop, however, and Tommy had to sit on the outside to push people away and make sure that nobody hurt his wife. Finally, it was their turn to jostle as they made their way off at Queenstown. In front of the ship, neither of them could help but stand and stare for a few moments. The sheer size of it was daunting.

"Well, come on then," Tommy said, snapping out of it and giving his wife a gentle push on the back. "We'll have plenny o' time to gawk while we're standin' in the queue." He slung his own bag onto his shoulder and took hers, then grabbed her hand. "Don' wanna get separated," he explained. "Seein' as I got both tickets."

Once through the queue, Tommy and Allison found their cabin and stowed their bags. Allison sat on the edge of the bottom bunk.

"Think I'll stay here and take a short nap," she said, pulling her feet up off of the floor. "All this runnin' 'n' standin' 'n' stuff's made me tired. I'll go lookin' 'round later; ship'll still be here in an hour or two." Tommy nodded.

"Alrigh', then...D'ya...wan' me ta stay here?" Allison smiled. She could hear it in his voice: he wanted to explore. She shook her head.

"Nah. You go on. I'll come find ya later." He nodded again.

"Kay. I'll uh...I'll prolly be up on D Deck when ya get up." She smiled.

"Okay, love. Go have fun." He kissed her and left to go explore the ship.

After looking around, Tommy leaned on the railing on D Deck, where he said he'd be. Not long after he sat down he made acquaintances with an Italian nearby.

"This ship is the most beautiful in the world," the Italian said, making conversation. Tommy swelled with pride, as if he himself had helped build it.

"Yeah, it's an Irish ship," he told him.

"No! It's English, no?"

"Nah! Fifteen thousand big Irish men built this ship, big strong Irish hands." He glared in disgust as a first class dog-walker went by. "Tha's typical, isn't it? First class dogs come down 'ere to take a shite." A blonde man, presumably the Italian's friend, who'd been drawing a man and his daughter turned to Tommy.

"Meh, it's just to remind us of where we rank in the scheme of things."

"As if we could forget!" Tommy leaned forward and stuck out his hand. "Tommy Ryan." The blonde shook it.

"Jack Dawson." The Italian offered his hand, as well, and introduced himself as Fabrizio.

"So ya make any money wit yer drawin's?" Tommy asked, to keep the conversation going. Jack had stopped, however, and was staring up at C Deck. Tommy followed his gaze to a young red head dressed in fine clothes leaning on the railing. "Ah, forget it boyo. You'll as like as have angels fly out yer arse as get next to the likes of her."

"Nonsense!" Allison had come up behind Tommy. "Can't never could, y'know." She put her arms around Tommy's ribs. "If ya haven't noticed, Tom, we're on the Ship of _Dreams_, headin' for the Land of _Opportunity_." Tommy pulled his arm back and around his wife's shoulders. Fabrizio laughed as he waved his hand in front of Jack's face. Allison for the first time followed Jack's gaze up to where the first class woman was standing. A young first class man came out and took her by the elbow. "Ah...yeah, you'll as like as have angels fly out o' yer arse," she repeated Tommy's sentiment.

"Meet the missus," Tommy said, gesturing to Allison. "My wife Allison." Allison smiled and shook Jack and Fabrizio's hands as they each introduced themselves.

"Ally, if ya like. Pleasure. So where're you fine fellas headed after we dock in New York?" Jack shrugged.

"Don't know. Won these tickets in a lucky hand in poker, so we don't really have a plan. What about you?"

"We're headin' ta Boston." Tommy sighed exasperatedly.

"We're _stayin'_ in _New York_." He turned to the other two. "She got some foolish notion in 'er head that we're goin' to Boston to live with 'er so-called successful uncle." He rolled his eyes.

"Don't you talk about me like I'm not here, Thomas Ryan!" Allison pursed her lips and folded her arms over her chest. "And Uncle Porrick _is_ successful, thank you!"

"Ally, no one's heard from 'im in months!" She just pursed her lips harder and squinted at him. "Anyway," he said, turning back to Jack and Fabrizio, "we're headin' there to start a new life. Scraped together what we figure's 'bout $100, so we're gonna go on that and a whole lotta luck and try to make a better life. For the kid, you know." He put a hand on Allison's belly. Jack and Fabrizio nodded their understanding.

"Travel, it's not so good for a woman expecting, is it?" Fabrizio asked. Allison sighed.

"No, it isn't. We wanted to start a new life anyway, but a child gave us motivation. But I wasn't expectin' when we got the tickets." Tommy nodded.

"Few months ago, I come home from work and hear, 'Guess what, honey?'" The others laughed when his eyes widened momentarily and his mouth dropped open, reenacting his surprise.

"So when's Momma due?" Jack asked in a tone oddly familiar for such a short acquaintance.

"August," she answered slowly, after the initial surprise of being called "Momma" by a complete stranger. Jack smiled.

"Summer baby. Cheerful disposition, light-haired most likely. Just...from my experience," he added with a shrug. "Got any names picked out?"

"Adam Patrick if it's a boy, Mary Sinead if it's a girl." He may've been a bit more forward than she was used to, but Ally decided that she liked Jack Dawson.


	3. Everyone Likes a Good Party

**Disclaimer: Not mine, blahdeebloo…Oh yeah, most of y'all have probably figured this out by now, but after the prologue is one chapter for each day of the Titanic's voyage. I'm afraid this chapter's a bit shorter than the last one, but a chapter nonetheless. Enjoy. Also, thanks to HannahCimsGwendolyn (even though I know you haven't seen **_**Titanic**_** in a long time) and Lazy Chestnut for their reviews. =)**

**April 12, 1912**

Allison and Tommy were amazed at the sheer size of the ship and had spent the whole day exploring the ship. They'd also become fast friends with Jack and Fabrizio, and it had been agreed that whether they were going to Boston or staying in New York, Jack and Fabrizio would stay with them. At dinner on G Deck, Allison spoke quietly with Tommy and Fabrizio. Everyone spoke quietly during dinner, keeping to their own kind and people they'd met in the boarding queue.

"So where's Jack?" Tommy asked Fabrizio, who shrugged.

"At dinner on the C Deck." Allison's eyes widened.

"C Deck? What on God's green earth is he doin' there?"

"He said he helped this first class girl. The one from yesterday, remember? And he's havin dinner with them. He said he come down right after, though," he added.

After dinner people milled about in an uncomfortable silence for a few minutes knowing they should mingle, but too distrusting to. A few men, finally tired of the silence, disappeared for a few minutes and came back, each one bearing an instrument. A bagpipe was struck up, followed closely by a tambour, then a lute and a fiddle. A Slavic man soon joined in on the spoons. Allison grinned.

"No matter where yer from," she observed, taking a sip of her beer, "everyone likes a good party." She tried to dance a few times, but could only last a song or two before having to sit down again. "You go and dance, enjoy yerselves," she told Tommy and Fabrizio, "I'll see if that fiddler'll lemme take a try at it." Fabrizio soon went off to dance with a Swede named Helga, but Tommy insisted on staying near his wife. He _did_ find amusement of his own at the tables, challenging whoever would take it to an arm wrestle. Jack soon appeared, bringing with him the red head from the day before. He introduced the first class girl to them first, much to Allison's surprise.

"Momma, this is Rose," Tommy was busy with a match, so Jack didn't bother distracting him with introductions, "Rose, this is Allison and Tommy Ryan." Allison smiled politely, bobbed a curtsey, and shook Rose's hand gently.

"Pleasure," she said quietly. Never having been in the presence of a lady before, Allison wasn't quite sure what to expect or how to act. Rose, however, smiled courteously.

"Likewise."

Rose then leaned over and whispered into Jack's ear, who then grinned and shook his head. Over the din, Allison was sure she heard Jack protesting that she wasn't _really _his mother.

A shout announced Tommy's triumph and Allison turned her attention back to her husband while Jack took Rose out onto the dance floor. A stocky Russian sat down across from Tommy.

"You arm wrestle?" the Russian asked in broken English. Tommy nodded and stuck out his arm as a challenge. "What do I get if I win?" The Russian looked suspiciously at Tommy's hand. Allison's husband responded with a short bark of laughter at the sheer improbability of it.

"Well...on the off-chance that you _do_ win, you get nothing short of knowing that you did a job well-done and defeated who is so far _Titanic_'s undefeated arm wrestler." He grinned at the Russian, who considered the offer for a moment, then took the Irishman's hand.

Allison was yelling along with the other men, egging Tommy on. She didn't want to see this short Russian defeat her husband anymore than anyone else. Jack reached around the Russian to grab a couple of beers on Tommy's side of the table only moments before his opponent finally got the better of him and sent several glasses spilling. Allison groaned in disappointment, never mind at the waste of perfectly good beer.

"Best two outta t'ree!" Tommy shouted. Allison laughed; he never _had _taken defeat easily.

"You think you're big tough men?" Rose interrupted, taking Tommy's cigarette out of his mouth and taking a drag. "Let's see you do this." She gave the extra material of her dress to Jack to hold up, then very gradually lifted herself on her feet until she was just on the very tips of her toes. Allison stared, wide-eyed, thinking of the unimaginable pain.

"Jesus, Mary, and Joseph!" she muttered as Rose finally crossed her pain threshold and fell back to the floor. "Can you imagine that?" she asked, turning to her husband, but Tommy was already invested in another arm wrestling match with the Russian.

"Jack tells me yer engaged," Allison shouted to Rose over the noise. Rose merely nodded as she took another sip of beer. "Here's a li'l advice, and it'll make ya happier, I promise: You're not his door mat to be stepped 'pon, so don' act like it. Donchoo take any shite from a man, no matter who he is." The younger woman nodded attentively.

"I'll keep that in mind," she shouted back.


	4. The Ship of Getting an Arse Whipping

**Disclaimer: Not mine, blah blah. Oh, forgot in the prologue…special thanks to Mama Beaulieu for the "we may be poor, but at least we're clean" quote. That wasn't mine, either.**

A/N: So April 13 is really short and April 14 is reeeeeeeaaaaaalllly long, so I'm gonna break up the fourteenth into smaller bits and add some in this chapter. Brownies for anyone who spots the reference to another DiCaprio film. Reviews are love! 3

**April 13, 1912**

"Rose?" Allison said uncertainly, approaching the woman. She knew she shouldn't being addressing Rose so informally, but she didn't know her last name. Rose turned around and smiled politely at Allison.

"Oh, hello," she said genially. "Mrs. Ryan, right?" Allison shrugged.

"Call me Allison. Ally, if you like. Um...I just wanted to talk to you for a mo'." As Rose kept walking, Allison kept about half a step behind her. She knew her place in the scheme of things.

"What did you want to talk about?" Allison twisted her wedding band around her finger, as was her habit when she was nervous.

"Well, um...I noticed that you...er...Well, you're a first class passenger." Rose nodded. "And I was wonderin'...Look, Tommy 'n' me, we're startin' completely over, an' it's gonna be hard, see. Neither of us have a job. So, I was wonderin' if maybe there was an openin' for maybe a maid or a driver or somethin'. Just...for either one o' us. My father (God bless his soul) worked with his hands all his life and the last few years, he couldn't walk, couldn't do nothin'. Couldn't even hold a spoon. I just don't want that for Tommy, and I'll do anythin' I can to help out." As she'd gone on, Allison had begun to speak faster and faster. She hadn't meant to talk so much, but it had all just come spilling out at once. She blushed with embarrassment at divulging so much about herself to this stranger. "Just...a job, for either one o' us. We'll do anything, s'long's the pay's enough for us to live. I can cook or clean or look after any littleuns you have, anything." Rose stayed silent for a moment, then stopped and turned to the older woman.

"How old are you?"

"Twenty-three next month, miss."

"And Tommy?"

"Twenty-five." Rose nodded.

"Well, I can talk to Mother about any open positions. I'm not sure what use we would have for a woman with a baby, but I'm sure we can use Tommy." Allison grinned and kept herself from hugging the girl.

"Thank you so very much, Rose," she said sincerely. "You dunno how much it means to us." Rose smiled and they began to part company. A few steps away, Allison stopped and turned around. "Oh, but Rose?" The teenager also turned around. "You be careful with our boy Jack," she warned, not unkindly.

Rose gave her a small smile and brief nod, not bothering to tell her how she had told Jack that morning to leave her alone, and went on her way. Allison decided not to tell Tommy about the job opportunity until it was certain that at least one of them had a place in the Dewitt Baukater household.

**April 14, 1912 11:30 p.m.**

The rest of the previous day had passed fairly uneventfully, as had most of this day. Tommy and Allison spent most of their time exploring the ship together or up on D Deck, people-watching with Jack and Fabrizio...when Jack wasn't with Rose.

"That boy's gonna get himself into a fair bit o' trouble," Allison would say, shaking her head as he would retreat yet again to try and meet Rose somewhere. Tommy just smiled and shrugged.

"What happened to the Ship of Dreams?" His wife elbowed him in the ribs gently.

"There's a difference between the Ship of Dreams and the Ship of Getting An Arse Whippin' from an Upper Class Woman's Husband er whatever-he-is." Tommy leaned over the railing and spat into the ocean.

"Oh, that's cheerful."

"And that was extremely attractive, ya know. Tha's one o' the reasons I married you; yer ability to spit phlegm over long distances." He smiled and kissed her.

"You know you love me, Ally, phlegm and all." Allison could only grin, because she knew it was true.

* * *

"Ya do know you're gonna get yerself into trouble one o' these days, righ?" Allison leaned beside Jack on the railing of D deck. Jack nodded.

"I know, Momma. Rich girls are trouble, always have been and always will be." He turned to her. "But I think I'm in love." Allison smiled and smoothed down his hair.

"An' I wish ya all the joy in th' world...I just don' wantcha ta wind up hurt by her fiancee..._or_ her."

"Don't worry bout me, Momma, I'll be alright."

"Why do you call me that?"

"What?" She deepened her voice and put on her best Southern accent.

"'Momma.'" He smiled.

"Oh, that. Well, see, I knew this guy once and every pregnant lady he met he'd call her 'Momma' to get her used to the name...I guess that habit of his just kinda stuck on me is all, and you seem like the momma-bear type. You know, protective of you and yours but still kind to most people you meet." She smiled.

"Well, I'm glad that's a good thing, then." Jack nodded.

"Yeah. I suppose you could call it...a term of endearment." His eyes turned their focus suddenly from her to someone or something behind her. As he stood there conflicted for a moment, Ally smiled.

"Don' worry bout me, I'll be fine," she said without turning to see what he was focusing on. "I'm a big girl, I can take care of meself. Go boy, seek happy nights to happy days!" She gave him a small push. "Just remember what I said."

"I will, Momma. Thanks." He gave her a quick peck on the forehead and strode past her to meet Rose.


	5. A Late Night Stroll

**Disclaimer: Still not mine. Also not mine is "If I'd been meant to go across the sea, God wouldn't have cast my lot on an island." But I'll give brownies to whoever can get it. I'll post where it's from by the end of the story, since I'm legally obligated to.**

**April 14, 1912 11:34 p.m.**

Allison tossed and turned in her small bed, unable to even close her eyes. She rolled over and nudged Tommy in the ribs.

"Tom?" she said in a hoarse whisper. "Tommy?"

"Mmm?"

"Are ye awake?"

"Mmf." Tommy rolled over to where his back was to her.

"Tommy!" She jabbed him in the ribs with a finger.

"What?" he mumbled groggily.

"Are you awake?"

"I am now." He sighed irritably and rolled over to face her. He'd just fallen back asleep after hearing her try to sneak in a few minutes earlier. "What is it?"

"I can't sleep." He took a deep breath, trying not to be irritated, telling himself that this whole waking him up when she couldn't sleep thing would be over once she had the baby.

"And you want me to...?"

"D'ya wanna go for a walk?" He sighed, knowing she wouldn't let him sleep until he'd gone for a walk with her, and rolled out of bed. He quickly threw on his suspenders and grabbed their coats and his hat.

"So...why did ya drag me out here?" he asked grumpily as they roamed around D Deck. "It's freezing!" He pulled his coat more tightly around himself.

"I don't really appreciate your tone," she shot back testily. Tommy couldn't help but smile a little.

"And you were worried about bein' a good mum?" She grinned back and pushed him a little. As she pushed him, he grabbed her arm and pulled her to him and into a big bear hug to keep warm. Allison wrapped her arms around her husbands ribs, underneath his coat, and fit her head just underneath his chin.

"I'm scared," she said quietly. Tommy frowned and looked down.

"'Bout what, love?" She looked back up at him.

"Everything. I mean, we're goin' somewhere we've never been with naught but a hundred bucks to our name, no friends, no family-"

"We got friends," Tommy broke in. Allison raised an eyebrow.

"Yeah," she said slowly. "But they're both on this ship with us. I mean friends that already have a life in America, that could help us if we fall on our noses. No family, neither. I'm scared about..." she took a deep breath; she'd been hiding this from him for months, "about havin' this baby." Tommy raised his eyebrows in surprise. "I...I don' wanna bring another life into this world if we can't take care of it. And even if we can...what if I'm a bad mum? What if he hates me? What if-" She was cut off with a kiss.

"Now tha's jus' silly," Tommy said gently once the kiss was broken. He kissed her forehead and, as she closed her eyes, each eyelid. "Ye'll be a great mum. I mean, ya practically raised Mary on yer own, an' look how _she_ turned out; married well, doin' pretty good on money."

Mary was Allison's younger sister, and she _had_ practically raised her on her own. After their father had died, their mother had taken a second job so that, when she _was_ home, she was sleeping if she wasn't soaking her weary feet in water Allison had boiled. By this time, too, both of their older brothers had taken jobs and one had taken a wife, so Allison stayed home and took care of Mary by default. After considering this, Allison nodded.

"I s'pose you're right." Tommy tilted her chin up and kissed her again.

"Don' worry 'bout it. Everything'll turn out okay." She smiled.

"But we're still goin' ta Boston, righ'?" He sighed.

"We never _were_ goin' ta Boston! We're _stayin'_ put in New York."

"Boston," Allison insisted with a mischievous grin.

"New York."

"Boston!" She stole Tommy's hat and put it on her own head, taking a few steps away from him. He pursed his lips to keep up the charade of being annoyed.

"New York!" He made a snatch at the hat, but she stepped out of his way just in time. This dissolved into Tommy chasing Allison about the deck, snatching at the hat. He knew that it was only a matter of time before she tired and gave up. Sure enough, after a few minutes of trying to stay away, Allison leaned on the railing, breathing heavily.

"Okay! Okay! Fine!" Tommy grinned and leaned against the rail in front of her and put his arms about her waist.

"New York?" She squinted at him.

"Boston!" He leaned in and kissed her, only to have the kiss broken off by an enormous scraping sound and the deck beneath them shaking. Allison held tighter to her husband. "Are we sinking?" Extremely wary of boats, Allison had declared numerous times that if she were meant to go across the sea, God wouldn't have cast her lot on an island. It was then that they caught sight of the enormous iceberg across the deck.

"No..." Tommy said slowly, watching as the berg passed by. "But we will be. Come on!" He grabbed her hand and led the way quickly back down to their quarters.


	6. Music to Drown By

A/N: Sosososo sorry for the lack of update!! I've been really busy with school and whatnot, so I've not been able to update recently!! Sorry guys!! D=

Tommy and Allison were greeted by mutters of "Scheisse!" and "Fils-de-a-chienne!" as they flicked on the light and threw their few possessions into their small bags.

"Was ist deis?" A German man who spoke broken English when fully awake asked groggily, squinting against the light.

"Come on, get up!" Tommy said urgently, pausing on his way to the door. "We've hit an iceberg. The ships gonna sink." The man squinted at him with eyes badly in need of a pair of specs.

"But ziss...ziss ist un unseenk-able ship..."

"ICEBERG!" Tommy shouted impatiently. "An enormous chunk of ICE in the ocean! It put gaping HOLES in the bloody SHIP! I don' care what they say, this ship is gonna sink!" Without waiting for a reply from the sleepy German, Tommy grabbed his wife's hand and pulled her out into the corridor, yanking a sweater over his head at the same time. Already, the practical people like Tommy had left their cabins as soon as they'd found out what had happened.

"Jesus Christ!" Allison shrieked in disgust as rats the size of small dogs started scurrying past her. Tommy, however, only pulled her along faster.

"This is the way the rats are goin', that's good enough for me." Catching sight of Fabrizio, Allison quickly slipped her bag over her shoulder and caught hold of his shirt with her free hand.

"Where's Jack?" she demanded. Fabrizio shrugged.

"I do not know. I've no seen him since dinner." Allison frowned. Though they'd only known each other for a few days, Allison with her maternal instinct had already adopted Fabrizio and Jack as the family she'd just lost. "Tom, we gotta find Jack."

"Jack's a big boy, he can take care o' himself, Ally," he called back to her. "Le'ss just worry 'bout us for now." He turned a corner to go up a flight of stairs, only to find them crowded by a sea of bodies and the gate closed at the top. Letting go of his wife's hand for a moment, he pushed his way up to the gate. "For the love of God, man, there are women and children down here! Let us up so we can 'ave a chance!" He said it mostly for his own small family, but also for the strangers around him.

"Please, sir, calm down," the guard asked him gently, unable to hide the fear in his voice. Tommy shook the gate in frustration then slid back into the crowd down the stairs to his wife. When he got there, Jack and Rose were with Fabrizio and Allison.

"It's hopeless down there!" He jerked his head back toward the gate.

"Well, whatever we're gonna do, we'd better do it fast," Jack unnecessarily pointed out.

Tommy nodded and once again grabbed Allison's hand and started shoving a path through the crowd. Once out in a little more of an open space, he led them down the corridor and to another set of stairs. This time, Jack went up to talk to the guard as the others waited impatiently below. Allison had buried her face in her husband's chest and was gently shaking. He looked down at the top of his hat, for she was indeed still wearing it, then massaged her neck for a moment with a firm but gentle hand.

"Hey, we'll get outta this okay," he assured her, tilting her chin up and wiping the tears away with a thumb. "I promise. You 'n' me 'n' kiddo here (she smiled as he put a hand on her stomach), we'll all get through. We're Irish, we're survivors!" She smiled, but nonetheless hid her face in his chest and hugged him tightly.

"Goddamn it to Hell, sonofabitch!" Jack's voice rose above a panicking crowd. A few moments later he reappeared and started pulling at a bench, trying to rip it off of the floor. Fabrizio soon joined then, not wanting to feel useless, so did Allison. She knew it wasn't good for her in her condition, but it would be even worse if she didn't do anything and she sank.

"What the _hell_ ya think you're doin, woman?" It was not an admonishment, more like a question of incredulity. She felt Tommy's strong hand on her shoulder and, though she tried to resist, he pulled her easily away from the bench and took her place.

"_Don't_ you talk to me like that, Tom!" she said indignantly with her fists on her hips. "And I _won't_ just stand here bein' useless!" There was a loud wrenching, then a _crack_ as the bench came off of its nails, taking bits of the floor with it.

"Ye wanna be useful," Tommy grunted, heaving the bench onto his shoulder, "get these people outta the way!"

"MOVE!" Allison shouted instantly at the top of her lungs. She prodded Rose. "Help me, Rose." Soon they had cleared a path, Rose politely shouting at people to move and Allison threatening physical violence (though, she never said inflicted by whom) on those who didn't.

"One!" Jack grunted. "Two! Three!" The three men rushed the gate as fast as they could, but the gate held. "Again!" Again came the count, and again came the rush, this time successful. Tommy rushed against the stream of escaping immigrants to pick his wife up bodily and carry her up the stairs and through the gate.

"Put me down, Tom, I can run for meself!" she insisted. Tommy, however, refused until they were well out of the path of escaping steerage. When he finally put her down, he once again grabbed her hand and started pulling her along, Fabrizio on their heels. Jack and Rose were running, hand-in-hand, beside them.

"The boats are gone!" Rose cried in dismay. Allison swore loudly and kicked a glass bottle rolling by. "Colonel!" Rose ran up to a man with a top hat and a prodigious mustache. "Colonel, are there any boats left?

"Yes my dear, all the way forward. I'll lead you." Rose, however, thanked him quickly and turned around. The five of them rushed pell-mell up the deck to find the boats.

"Music to drown by, now I _know_ I'm in first class," Tommy joked grimly as they ran by the string quartet playing stoically mid-ship. Allison wasn't the only one to swear this time as they discovered that the boats at the front of the sinking vessel had also gone.

"What do we do now?" She tried to keep calm, if nothing else then for young Rose's sake. She could tell that Jack was also trying to stay calm.

"Okay, uh...why don't you guys go check for more boats on the other side, we'll stay here." Tommy nodded in agreement, but his wife bit her lip.

"You're sure?" Jack smiled and pulled her into a hug.

"Positive. I'm a survivor, Momma." He kissed her cheek as she pulled away. "I'll be right here when you get back, I promise." With some misgivings, Allison let Tommy pull her away to the other side of the ship.

On the other side, there was only one lifeboat left and a mob was trying to get past Officer Murdoch. Allison leaned over the edge, somewhat away from the mob, then tugged Tommy over to her by the sleeve.

"Tom," she said quietly, pointing to the water now only ten feet below. Tommy took a deep breath and plunged into the crowd, Allison quietly following behind.

"Back, the lot of you, or I'll shoot you all like dogs!" Murdoch shouted. Tommy was one of those who spoke up.

"Give us a chance to live, ya bastard!" He pointed to Allison. "My wife, she's pregnant. Let _her_ be saved if I can't!" She turned in horror to her husband.

"I'm not leaving without you," she quietly insisted.

"You may have to," he murmured back. Seeing her bite her lip in worry again, he gave her a reassuring smile. "It'll be okay, Ally, I promise. If nothin' else, we can meet back up in New York. Just...wait for me by the Statue of Liberty or somethin', I promise I'll come. We'll make it through, just like I said; you, me, 'n' kiddo. Then we can move to Boston." She looked at him in disbelief for a moment as he winked at her. Sure, now that they were going to _die_, he decided to go to Boston!

"You're a stubborn ass," she said affectionately. He ran a hand through her hair.

"Ya got that right. Which is why we'll get through this: I'm a stubborn ass and I won't have it any other way." She smiled a little as he kissed her forehead.

They were jostled a little as the man Allison recognized as Rose's gentleman pushed past them. A man behind them jostled them as well and he and Tommy were pushed toward Murdoch a few steps. Murdoch, perceiving this as a threat, shot both men in the chest. Tommy seemed to fall in slow motion back into Allison, who caught him and lowered him to the deck gently.

"Tommy!" Allison knelt over her husband, a few of her tears dropping onto his cheek. "Nonononono! Don't you die on me, Thomas Ryan, you stubborn jackass!" Tommy only smiled vaguely at her and Allison shook her head, starting to lose it completely. "Please?" she begged, her voice rising in pitch. "We'll stay in New York, anything, please don't leave me Tommy." She desperately stroked his hair and crushed kisses onto his forehead and cheeks.

"I...l-l-love you...Ally." With her name on his lips, Tommy Ryan was gone from this world.

A choked sob escaped Allison, despite her attempts to hold it back, as she kissed her husband goodbye for the last time. Leaning him gently against the railing, she stood and suddenly lunged at Murdoch. Fabrizio, however, was close by to hook his arms beneath hers, gently enough to not hurt her but firm enough to hold her. This didn't keep her from struggling and reaching out, nails brandished like claws and hands making a strangling motion. All Murdoch could do was stare at her in horror for a few minutes before turning and saluting another officer.

"You BASTARD!" she screamed. Her expletive, however, was drowned out by the gunshot and Murdoch's body crumpled and fell into the water. "GOOD! She screamed savagely over the side at the now dead Murdoch. "Rot in Hell!" Fabrizio had to continue to hold her while she screamed undistinguishable obscenities at and tried to go into the water after Murdoch. After a few very long seconds she just sank to her knees and sobbed until she felt the icy cold water touching her foot.


	7. Orion's Belt

**Disclaimer: Not mine. Also, the quote about God meaning her to go across the water was from _A Tale of Two Cities_ by Charles Dickens.**

A/N: Come on guys, please?? I know you're reading, I can see the count go up, could y'all please just take a few seconds to review?

**April 15, 1912 3:17 a.m.**

All Allison knew anymore was the cold. Instead of trying to hang on to the ship as long as possible like some, she had gone with what common sense told her. Though she knew that there was the possibility of losing the baby, she had gone into the water and started swimming as fast and as far away as she could to get away from the suction that would be created once the ship finally did go under. Though she had lost track of Fabrizio, Jack, and Rose, she at least had gotten far enough away from the vessel to survive, and had been lucky enough to come across a large painting (probably something from a first class dining room or something) that would hold her and stay afloat. That had been after perhaps forty-five minutes or so of treading water and holding onto a roll top desk to keep her head above water. All she knew now was that drawing breath felt like millions of pins sticking into her lungs, that she was shivering uncontrollably, and that the stars were beautiful tonight.

_There must be so many new ones up there tonight,_ she thought to herself. When she was young, her mother in an attempt to ease the shock of her grandfather's passing had told her that every time someone died, a new star appeared in the sky. _Thousands and thousands of brand-new stars. I wonder which one is Tommy..._

As if in answer to her silent question, a particularly bright star near Orion's Belt caught her eye and sparkled at her as if to say, "I'm right here. I'm watching over you." A particularly violent shiver ran through her body as she smiled at the star, imagining her husband once again running his fingers through her hair, kissing her eyelids. The tears froze on her cheeks before she could wipe them away. Then she heard them.

First, it was just a distant, vague voice and a light in the distance. Then the shrill scream of a whistle in answer. Allison opened her mouth and tried to yell for help, but couldn't. Knowing what she had to do, she took a deep breath and braved the water, taking hold of a grandfather clock to keep the mediocre swimmer afloat. She was blinded by the light that shone in her face, right before she felt hands heaving her into a life boat.

"Ally?" Rose asked in a hoarse whisper. Allison tried to put on a brave front, attempting a fake smile but painfully aware that her chattering teeth were so loud in her head that she could barely hear Rose above them.

"That-t-t j-j-j-job st-st-st-still-l-l-l op-p-pen?" she tried to joke. Rose smiled kindly and wrapped a blanket around the older woman, also offering to share body heat with her by opening her own blanket. Allison, being shorter, was the one being held in the bear-hug as they wrapped their blankets around each other and tried to warm themselves. "Wh-wh-where's Jack-k-k-k?" she finally managed to stutter out.

"He's um..." Rose cast her eyes down.

"Oh. I'm s-s-so s-s-s-sorrrrry."

"What about Tommy?" Rose asked. Allison pursed her lips.

"Sh-sh-shot by M-m-mur-mur-mur-Murdoch."

"Oh, Ally, I'm so terribly sorry." Rose hugged her a little tighter, but Allison shook her head.

"I just wan-wanna sl-sl-sleep." Rose nodded, and Allison quickly dropped off to sleep in the bear hug with Rose. Tommy's star shone brightly down on her, and now more than ever it looked so inviting to her.

**3:48 a.m.**

Aside from Rose and Allison, only four other people had been saved.

"Sir?" Rose rasped cautiously. The officer with the flashlight looked at her softly.

"What is it, love?" he asked kindly.

"She's stopped shivering." Rose motioned downwards with her eyes to Allison.

"Well, that's good, isn't it?" the officer said reassuringly. "She either just warmed up or fell asleep's all. I wouldn't worry about it." But Rose shook her head.

"No. She fell asleep earlier, and she was still shivering." The officer frowned and leaned forward. Taking Allison's wrist, he felt for a pulse; his face fell.

"Is she any relation?" he asked quietly. Rose shook her head.

"Just a friend. Allison Ryan."

The officer gently took Allison from Rose, covering her head and face with the blanket, and set her gently by him up at the front, leaving Rose shivering alone. Rose sighed sadly and looked up to the sky. By Orion's Belt, she noticed, were two stars shining particularly brightly that night.

~Fin~


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